Whenever you are graced with a blessing, express your praise and gratitude to God and then remember to ask for forgiveness. The Arabic word for this is Estakhfurillah — Forgive me, Allah. Why seek forgiveness? To counter the manipulations of the ego, which is always eager to boast and take full credit for anything good that comes our way. The source of this practice is the Quranic verse, "When with God's help, victory comes…glorify the Lord and ask for His forgiveness" (110:1-3).

Jamal Rahman in Out of Darkness Into Light by Jamal Rahman, Kathleen Schmitt Elias, Ann Holmes Redding